To the editor:
This was my first year as an elected Budget Committee member. I have seen accusations being hurled around by many people on social media. I would like to give the voters of Tiverton …
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To the editor:
This was my first year as an elected Budget Committee member. I have seen accusations being hurled around by many people on social media. I would like to give the voters of Tiverton my perspective.
First this is not the only year we will receive revenue from the casino. We don’t need to spend every cent immediately. We need to plan for the future and prosperity of the town as well.
We didn’t agree on everything as the Budget Committee is made up of many different people and ideas. But Budget #1 was made up of hard work and compromise. Everything the Town Council suggested was not accepted as proposed. We discussed and weighed options.
We put forward a budget that supports the town’s needs; the priorities that were not handled by the previous council were amongst some of the first funded. I made my decisions based on what was spent in prior years, need versus desire.
Last but not least, giving the voters who voted for the casino to get that long awaited promise — a tax decrease! I received emails from town residents that I also took into account when making my votes.
The elected Budget Committee did put forward Budget #1 although not everyone got everything. We also need to try to avoid putting our town at risk of over spending for future years when casino revenue may not be what it is now. We have to spend and budget these casino funds with care. Budget #1 means voting to spend taxpayer dollars like we do with our own home budgets.
I welcome town residents to email me before the next budgeting cycle begins. Help the new Town Council as well as the Budget Committee to shape the future of our town.
Sheri Aakre
Tiverton